Cheesy Broccoli Dip

Cheesy broccoli dip is the ultimate party and Superbowl food. Loaded with vegetables like broccoli and red pepper, this dip is a healthier alternative.

It’s the end of November which means the holiday season is here and party planning is top of mind. If you’re trying to figure out what crowd-pleasing appetizer to serve at your holiday party this year, look no further, this cheesy broccoli dip is the ultimate party food. It’s savoury with just the right amount of cheese and the best part is that it’s a little on the healthier side – it’s loaded with veggies like broccoli and red pepper. I don’t typically serve hot appetizers because I tend to make my appetizers the night before and rely on my favourite make-ahead recipes like avocado feta dip or prosciutto wrapped prawns (I serve these cold), but this easy dip has totally changed that moving forward.

Christmas music is playing on the radio stations, the Christmas market opened in Toronto and holiday party invites are pouring in. I’m not hosting any holiday parties this year, but I will be attending a couple of potlucks. Since I’m not hosting anything, I figured that this is the perfect time to try out some new recipes to bring to holiday potlucks.

To start off, I took a look at the collection of easy hot appetizer recipes. I was intentional with my searching for this month’s #WhatsCooking assignment because I knew that I wanted to make a recipe that was easy to put together and that was something my friends would love. Hot dips seem to be all the rage (I love a good spinach artichoke dip), so I figured a cheesy hot broccoli dip was the perfect recipe.

I have a couple of tips for hosting or attending any sort of holiday potluck or party, especially when it comes to the food. First, it’s really important that a recipe is easy and simple to put together – even if you’re highly experienced. I always try to keep things as relatively simple as possible for holiday parties and tend to stick to stuffed mushrooms, puff pastry bread sticks and seafood salad (my go-to make-ahead appetizer).

If you’re really determined to make something more complicated, I recommend testing it out a couple of weeks before the actual party, that way you are familiar with the recipe and have some time to work out any of the kinks. Another quick tip for choosing the perfect party appetizer is to always take into account who will be at the party. While you wouldn’t want to serve this cheesy broccoli dip to a room full of vegans, it is a pretty perfect vegetarian appetizer option.

Cheesy Broccoli Dip recipe breakdown

I stuck pretty closely to the original cheesy broccoli dip, just adding a jalapeno (you can’t go wrong with a touch of heat) and swapping out onions for green onions sprinkled on top – I liked this extra touch of freshness to finish off the dip. The only change I would make to serve this at a party is to actually double the recipe, this dip is so good you’ll want more. I also used Cracker Barrel Mozza Cheddar shredded cheese instead of double cheddar, because it was all I could find at my grocery store and it is delicious.

Notes

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Kraft Canada – as always, all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting my sponsors and allowing me to continue creating content like this cheesy hot broccoli dip recipe!